Busan:Bukang-i, a shark that had been guided out of a canal in Busan, South Korea, has returned to the waterway. The shark was seen swimming Thursday morning in a narrow space between a flat floating platform installed near the canal's exit and a net set up as a second backstop. This sighting occurred just a day after Bukang-i was successfully guided out of the canal.
According to Yonhap News Agency, observers suggest that the shark may have swum back into the canal under the floating platform, also known as a pontoon. Bukang-i, named after Bukhang, Korean for North Port, was first spotted in the canal on September 18. The canal park has since become a major attraction, drawing over 1.6 million visitors as of Sunday.
After two failed attempts to guide the shark to the open sea, officials decided to wait for it to leave the canal on its own. However, due to concerns that the shark could die if water temperatures fell further, a third attempt was made. On Wednesday, a joint team of municipal and Coast Guard officials used a net secured to a pontoon to steer Bukang-i toward the canal's exit. By 6 p.m., the shark was seen near a pier outside the canal, although the area is not considered open sea.
Despite the successful guidance, visitors reported seeing the shark swimming back into the canal at around 11 p.m. Wednesday.